Affordable Autumn Getaways: Shinkansen Tickets at Half Price!

Sep 17, 2024 | News On Japan

HOKKAIDO, Sep 17, 2024 (News On Japan) - The autumn travel season is finally here! In Hokkaido, Japan's 'earliest autumn leaves' have begun to appear. With many long weekends this fall, travel demand is expected to rise. We have thoroughly researched ways to travel affordably!

Anchor Masatoshi Namba: "This fall, many of you might be planning a trip, but we all share the same goal—to travel as cheaply as possible, right? We’ve looked into how to make travel more affordable."

JR East's "Tokudane Special 21" e-tickets offer Shinkansen tickets for half price for a one-way trip per adult. For example:

- Tokyo to Toyama: Y12,760 → Y6,380
- Tokyo to Kanazawa: Y14,180 → Y7,090
- Tokyo to Fukui: Y15,610 → Y7,800

The eligible routes cover Shinkansen stations in the three Hokuriku prefectures, departing from Tokyo, Ueno, or Omiya.

It’s limited to "Eki-Net" members, so you must sign up for the Eki-Net service.

- Travel Period: October 15 to 31 This starts right after the long weekend in October.
- Sales Period: From 1 month to 21 days prior to the travel date.

That means you can book a ticket for October 16 starting on Monday, but as of September 16, the tickets have already sold out (as of 6:20 p.m.).

However, you can make "pre-orders" a week before the sale date, which increases your chances of securing a ticket.

ANA's Web-Only Sale: Fly to Okinawa for Y10,000

If you prefer flying, ANA is offering the "ANA Super Value Sale."

- Tokyo (Haneda) to Sapporo (New Chitose): Y7,700～
- Tokyo (Haneda) to Osaka (Itami): Y7,000～
- Tokyo (Haneda) to Okinawa (Naha): Y9,500～

All these fares are under Y10,000. The sale is available exclusively on ANA's website.

- Travel Period: November 1 to February 28, 2025 (excluding the New Year holiday period).
- Sales Period: Until 11:59 p.m. on September 18.

Hotel critic Nobuaki Takizawa explains, "It’s difficult to find cheap accommodations in hotels and ryokan right now." However, sometimes the official websites offer lower prices than booking sites, along with perks like complimentary drinks or early check-in.

Interestingly, last month I traveled and found that booking directly through a hotel’s phone line saved me Y500 compared to booking through a travel site. Skipping the middleman might be the cheaper option after all.

Source: TBS

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